Alan Rickman aka Professor Snape of Harry Potter fame passes away at the age of 69

British actor Alan Rickman, well known for roles in Harry Potter and Love Actually, passed away at the age of 69 - he succumbed to cancer. He had shot to stardom in 1988 when he played the role of Hans Gruber, a terrorist, opposite Bruce Willis, the NYPD cop in Die Hard.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 14 January 2016.

His career began in the 1970s and, in the course of his journey, he had won a BAFTA, Golden Globe, Emmy and Screen Actors Guild award. He gained legions of new, younger fans due to his role as Professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films.
His memorable turn as the Sheriff of Nottingham in the 1991 blockbuster Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves earned him a BAFTA for best supporting actor. And, he took home a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his performance as Rasputin: Dark Servant Of Destiny in HBO's 1996 drama.
Just last year he had revealed that he had married his high school sweetheart after 50 years together. Both he and Rima Horton had been in a relationship since they met when he was 19 and she was 18 and had been living together in London for 50 years. They finally tied the knot in secret. After the wedding in New York, they walked across the Brooklyn Bridge and had lunch.

(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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20th Century Fox to make sixth Die Hard movie - ‘Die Hard 6: Live Free – Die Hard’

The ‘Die Hard’ series of movies have grossed nearly USD 1.5 billion worldwide. Therefore, 20th Century Fox has decided to go in for a sixth one. It would be titled ‘Live Free or Die Hard’ and Len Wiseman would return to the director’s chair.
This has been reported in indianexpress.com dated 16 October 2015.

It seems one is used to sequels but the sixth ‘Die Hard’ would be a prequel of sorts. It would go back in time to the period when John McClane was an ordinary cop in New York City. It would show how he came to be known as a ‘die-hard’ cop.
The action would be set in pre 1979 period and the young John would be portrayed by a young actor – but Bruce Willis would be seen in certain portions.
Lorenzo di Bonaventura is involved as producer. Along with Wiseman, he is now looking for a scribe to write a story of a reinvention of the venerable action series.
Rumor has it that Fox was trying to bring Samuel L Jackson back to the “Die Hard” franchise. The Academy Award nominee was expected to reprise his “Die Hard with a Vengeance” role as Zeus Carver. (Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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